[Congressional Record Volume 152, Number 9 (Tuesday, January 31, 2006)]
[Senate]
[Pages S373-S374]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




SENATE RESOLUTION 361--HONORING PROFESSIONAL SURVEYORS AND RECOGNIZING 
                     THEIR CONTRIBUTIONS TO SOCIETY

  Mr. ALLEN (for himself and Mr. Stevens) submitted the following 
resolution; which was considered and agreed to:

                              S. Res. 361

       Whereas there are over 45,000 professional surveyors in the 
     United States;
       Whereas 2006 marks the 200th anniversary of the end of the 
     Lewis and Clark landmark expedition through the upper reaches 
     of the Louisiana Territory and the American West;
       Whereas this journey is one of the most important surveying 
     expeditions in the history of the United States because of 
     the wealth of geographical and scientific information it 
     provided about the new Nation;
       Whereas the nature of surveying has changed dramatically 
     since 1785, as it is no

[[Page S374]]

     longer limited to the description and location of land 
     boundaries;
       Whereas hydrographic surveys are important to the use of 
     all our bodies of water;
       Whereas engineering surveys are utilized in the study and 
     selection of engineering construction;
       Whereas geodetic surveys determine precise global 
     positioning for such activities as aircraft and missile 
     navigation;
       Whereas cartographic surveys are used for mapping and 
     charting, as well as photogrammetry, the science of using 
     aerial photographs for measurement and map production;
       Whereas many services are provided through the use of 
     sophisticated equipment and techniques, such as satellite-
     borne remote sensing devices and automated positioning, 
     measuring, recording, and plotting equipment;
       Whereas the role of the surveyor has been, and remains, of 
     vital importance in the development of the United States;
       Whereas since the colonial days of this Nation, surveyors 
     have been leaders in the community, Statesmen, influential 
     citizens, and shapers of cultural standards;
       Whereas former surveyors include George Washington, Thomas 
     Jefferson, and Abraham Lincoln;
       Whereas it was the work of the surveyor that determined the 
     boundaries of land, the greatest economic asset in the 
     colonies that became the United States;
       Whereas Thomas Jefferson chaired a committee in 1784 to 
     devise a plan for disposing of lands west of the 13 original 
     colonies;
       Whereas Thomas Jefferson argued that surveying before sale 
     was necessary to prevent overlapping claim and to simplify 
     deeds and registers;
       Whereas Thomas Jefferson reportedly wrote a plan, which was 
     debated in Congress and in modified form was adopted as the 
     Land Ordinance of May 20, 1785, establishing the Public Land 
     Survey System (``PLSS''), the rectangular system that 
     continues today in 30 midwestern and western states; and
       Whereas the establishment of the third week of March as 
     National Surveyors Week would be a fitting tribute to all 
     surveyors: Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved, That the Senate--
       (1) recommends the establishment of National Surveyors 
     Week;
       (2) calls on the people of the United States to observe 
     National Surveyors Week each year with appropriate ceremonies 
     and activities paying tribute to professional surveyors and 
     their contribution to society; and
       (3) invites the people of the United States to look back at 
     the historic contributions of surveying and look ahead to the 
     new technologies which are constantly modernizing this 
     honored and learned profession.

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